Post by Lars Engstrom on Jul 20, 2013 20:38:01 GMT -5
Lars S Engstrom
The Basics
Full Name: Lars Samuel Engstrom
Call Sign: N/A
Nickname(s)/Alias(es): Doc
Gender: Male
Sexual Orientation: Straight
Age: 30
Birthday: January 14th 1973 A.E.
Birthplace: Gemenon
Occupation: Senior Combat Medic
Rank/Title: Gunnery Sergeant
Physical Appearance
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 240
Build: Muscular
Hair: Short cut, Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Distinguishing Marks: Assorted scars from early life. He also has one long scar across his stomach from when his father cut him.
Possessions, Equipment, Belongings: He carries a pistol, but nothing else, though he can use just about any weapon if he has to. He has a fairly extensive (and well organized) medical bag, which he is constantly updating, and checking for shortages. He wears fatigues most of the time, and standard body armor when he is in a combat zone. He always has his watch with him, and set correctly
Other:
Play- By: Neil Patrick Harris
Friends, Family, and Other Relationships
Mother: Eleanor Enstrom
Father: Sven Engstrom
Siblings: Zoë Hackett (Step Sister)
Significant Other: N/A
Children: None
Other Notable Persons: John DuVaine (Adopted Father), Ally Triston (Ex Lover, Killed on BS Jupiter)
Personality
Likes: Please list at least five (5)
- Singing
- Music
- Dancing (Ballroom)
- Fancy Clothes (Though He doesn't own Many)
- Women
- Adventure
- Practicing Medicine
- Firearms
- Hand to Hand Combat
Dislikes: Please list at least five (5)
- Making Mistakes
- Failure
- Reminders of his past
- Incompetance
- Liars
- Spiders
- Horror Films
- Smoking
Fears: Please list at least one (1)
- His Past
- Being "Forever Alone"
- Clowns
Strengths:
- Leadership
- Compassion
- Medicine
Weaknesses:
- Pretty Girls
- Alcohol
- Recklessness, expecially if someone is in danger
Aspirations: To prove himself to the worlds. Show that his father's worthlessness doesn't extend to him.
General Personality: He is a straight forward guy, who is very organized and grounded. He likes to keep things short and sweet and to the point. He is often the type to keep to himself, although if you get to know him he will do just about anything for you. He loves to read, and he is a huge fan of music. He may not be openly happy when he is around people, but those that become his friends see a whole different side, the kind of person who is happy, and tells jokes and smiles. When it comes to work however, he is dead serious. He is good at what he does, and he knows it, but he never brags. He is always trying to make himself better, to save everyone, to be the best. He is perfectly suited for the military, taking orders well, and excellent at leading others in a time of need. He is also Monotheistic, and has a firm belief in a higher power.
The Backstory
History:
THE BEGINNING
1973-1992
Lars hated his family, from the day he was old enough to really understand them. His father was a drunk, and abusive, his mother was not much better. His childhood was hard, and he ran away from home more times than he could count. Every day was unpleasant and painful, and he tries very hard to push it away, and erase most of it from his mind.
When he was 8, he found a kitten that was hurt, and needed help. He brought it home, and did his best to nurse it back to health. Unfortunately, his father got very drunk, and killed the cat, and in his drunken anger and rage, he slashed Lars across the stomach. In a haze, caused by pain and fear, Lars ran out of the house and continued running until, after a short distance, he fell to the ground and lay bleeding in the snow. Had it not been for a passing stranger, Lars would have died that day. But the man who found him on the ground, who happened to be a doctor himself, took the boy to a hospital and helped save his life.
Soon after, John, for that was the doctors name, filed to have Lars removed from the abusive home in which he lived, and brought to live with him. That was the day that everything changed.
The next ten years of his life were relatively uneventful. He went to school, and behaved more or less as any young boy should. Had a few girlfriends, got in trouble, the usual. It was a dream come true for a boy who expected only a life full of pain and neglect.
The kindness shown to him by the doctor changed everything for young Lars. He decided that he wanted to be a doctor. But because of his deep love for adventure and his strong will, he knew that a traditional college wouldn't suit him. Soon after, he enlisted in the Colonial Marines, as a combat medic.
He found the military to be a perfect fit for him, and he excelled. He learned all he could about medicine, and made it his mission to learn even more than the corps would teach. He proved his skill as both a medic and a leader, and impressed all he served with. His childhood had taught him that there must be something more than family to live for, and it instilled a deep belief in some higher power within him. This often caused issues with some of the more by-the-book CO's he was with. He often was disciplined for trying to help locals who were sick, and he often was threatened with discharge.
*********
BASIC
1992
From the very first day of boot camp, Lars knew that this was the life for him. He found it easy to live within the confines of the strict orders and heavily regulated way of doing things the military had created. He worked well with his fellow recruits, and didn't make waves. His first few weeks at basic was also fairly uneventful.
Perhaps the most interesting encounter, and the one he remembers best, came during those first few weeks of his military career. It was during dinner, at the mess. As Lars picked up his tray from the cafeteria line, he noticed another recruit, a female, being hassled by one of the DI's. The girl had been tripped by another recruit, most likely in jest, but had fallen and dumped the majority of her food on the instructor's lap, and face. The explosion of four letter words was enough to make even a sailor grimace, and the girl looked close to tears. Lars, being the sucker that he was, went to her aid. He had seen the boy trip her, and before he even thoght of the possible outcome, he proceeded to jump to her aid.
The Instructor's eyes, or what little of them could be seen through the spaghetti, narrowed. And He turned his ferocity towards Lars. Lars winced as spittle flew into his face as the tongue lashing grew more severe, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed the other recruit slip away, and he couldn't contain a smile. The instructor noticed the smile, and proceeded to give young Lars KP for the next week.
This incident seemed to set the precedent for the rest of his time in basic. He was constantly reprimanded for coming to the aid of those who were in trouble, even when he should have just kept his mouth shut, and moved on. He was nearly kicked out on a number of occasions, but his wits, and way with words seemed to be able to get him out of the frying pan most times.
***********
AIT
1993-1994
After completing Marine Basic Training, Lars was shipped off to Medical AIT. He found the concepts of healing wounded in the field fascinating. Something about saving someone while bullets were zipping around your head drew him in like a moth to a light bulb. He excelled at all things medical. What he lacked in privilege and previous knowledge he made up for in sheer persistence and drive.
Lars made it his mission to work harder, and longer than anyone else. Acing tests, both written and practical, he drew the attention of many higher ups. It wasn't long before the young medic was being considered for many interesting and rare assignments. He was even offered a scholarship to one of the finest ROTC programs in the 12 colonies, but turned it down. HE felt the need to feel the heat of battle, and knew that if he became an officer, odds were he'd be posted at some hospital or other, stuck behind a desk for most of the day. He opted for the hard way, knowing that he would enjoy being an officer one day, but not for a while yet. He set his sights on rising through the ranks, and then OCS in the future.
***********
POSTING
1994-1996
When he completed basic, and medical school, Lars eagerly awaited his first posting. He dreamed of a posting on Tauron, or Caprica, perhaps somewhere tropical. He wanted to get off this rock, Gemenon, while it was home, was not where he wanted to be. His wild soul longed for adventure, and freedom. However when his orders came down, his face fell. He had been assigned to a local defense platoon, on Gemenon. In his home city.
Lieutenant Jeremy Bivans was the CO of the 1st Platoon of Alpha Company, 17th Battalion Colonial Marine Corps, and he was a fireball of an officer. From day one, he picked out Corporal Engstrom, and marked him as someone of interest. Lars was constantly volunteering for extra patrols, as well as local aid missions, and when he wasn't working, or volunteering, he was reading every piece of military and medical literature he could get his hands on. Bivans once commented that, "You could tell when Engstrom was around because he was everywhere. From the cafeteria to his quarters, you could hear him muttering about medical mumbo jumbo, or singing, or whistling. Some people hated him for it, but I always thought it brought a sense of life to the place. After 10 months of the same old same old, it was nice to get a break."
The posting on Gemenon was fairly uneventful, most days were just security patrols around the facility, as well as a handful of humanitarian ops. It was hard to think that this was what he had worked so hard for, to live no more than a dozen blocks from home, and tend to cuts and scrapes, or the occasional wound from a dissenter's tossed rock. But in the course of 12 hours in December 96, that changed.
The platoon was called out to help put down rioting in the central square, some dissident or other had got his pants in a twist about some new law, and gathered a bunch of buddies to march in protest. They had gathered momentum as they moved through the town, and violence errupted when police asked them to disperse. The police were losing ground, because it seemed suddenly the entire city was on the move. Lars' platoon was ordered to reinforce the police until help could arrive.
It should have been simple enough, they were going against unorganized rioters, who, while they were armed, up to this point showed no signs of any formal training. In fact, the majority of serious injuries had been fellow rioters firing into each other. Bivans laughed when they got the assignment. "Leave it to the cops to frak this one up." He muttered, as they boarded the raptors to head into the area. Lars smiled, chuckling at the joke.
Then all hell broke lose. The first raptor in was hit by and RPG, and crashed on the top of a building. Before the rest of the piltos even knew what was happening, the sky exploded with small arms fire, and more RPGS. Lars, who was riding in the second raptor with Bivans, just barely managed to make it out of the craft before it too was hit. The smoke was thick, and everywhere people screamed. It seemed that this "riot" was more just a cover to start a full scale guerrilla war.
The intense firefights went on for hours. Lars, Bivans, and what remained of their platoon were pinned behind wreckage of raptors, and an overturned bus, and all but out of ammo when everything went quiet. All the bullets stopped, and a deathly quiet fell. Lars, who was patching up a bullet hole on a young private looked up, seeing the confusion in the eyes of Lt. Bivans. He tied off the bandage, and moved closer to the rest of the group.
It was decided that perhaps the rebels had retreated, as reinforcements were slotted for arrival within the next 15 minutes. They decided to try to find better cover in the brief ceasefire. Lars helped one of the injured to his feet, and then proceeded to move out with the rest, supporting his fellow as they walked into the open. It was as they moved away from their cover that two things happened, almost simultaneously. First: Lars tripped over the body of a middle aged man, and second, a hidden PA system came on, crackling with the voice of some loud mouthed freedom fighter. Lars couldn't hear much, mostly because he had seen the face of the dead man. It was his adopted father. But before the reality could sink in, he heard Bivans exclaim, as the recording finished its message.
"Oh frak!"
"Goodbye Marines... see you in Hades"
Lars felt something collide with him, knocking him back behind cover, just as the world exploded around them.
Later, it was determined that the terrorist cell, known as the Soldiers of the One, had rigged the whole square with nearly two tons of explosives. The plan had been to detonate it when the crowd was still in the area, but due to a wiring complication, it had been delayed. 1st platoon was all but wiped out. Lars and the man he had been carrying, as well as two others who had survived the crash on the roof, were all that remained. It was a tragedy unlike Gemenon had seen for years.
Lars, after being treated for his relatively minor wounds, and given time off to attend the funeral for John, was returned to his post on Gemenon, to aide in the efforts to rebuild and recover from the explosions. It felt good to give back to his home planet, but the pain of the memories and the loss of friends made it hard to enjoy what he was doing. He wanted to leave, now more than ever.
After the reconstruction was well underway, Lars requested, and was granted transfer to the Battlestar Jupiter, as part of the marine medical staff.
*********
BATTLESTAR JUPITER
1996-2002
Lars spent about six years on the Jupiter, working as a combat medic. There were several deployments, to put down insurrection as well as a little bit of just about everything. He proved time and again that he was an exceptional medic, and a decent soldier. He was plagued by memories of Gemenon, but managed to force them away over time. He still has nightmares about the face of his father, and the explosion, but not nearly as often.
During his time on the Jupiter he met a girl, named Ally Triston, a machinist's mate. They met in rather odd circumstances, it was her first day, and literally ran into Lars whilst sprinting to make it to the decks on time. That meeting proved to be a fateful one, because over the course of the next two years they fell deeply in love, and were planning to get married, when yet again, tragedy struck.
During routine maintenance on the Jupiter's vipers, a joint on a hoist snapped, and the ship slid off the stand, crushing thee mechanics, among them Ally. Lars was also "crushed," pardon that pun. He lost his motivation, and was half tempted to leave the Corps. But somehow he pulled through, and though he claims he will never love again, part of him hopes to find someone else to help make the cold of deep space less lonely.
It was also on board the Jupiter that he discovered a talent for boxing. He became a fierce contender in the traditional boxing matches, it allowed him to relieve his stress, and he waited for each match with unmatched anticipation. Over his seven year stint on the Jupiter, he rose to the rank of Sergeant First Class, and was looking into OCS, when the order came down for his transfer to the newer Battlestar Hyperion.
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BATTLESTAR HYPERION
2002-Present
With his transfer to the Hyperion, Lars also received the promotion to Gunnery Sergeant. He served for the better part of a year as the Senior Medic assigned to the Hyperion's Marine Detachment. He applied for OCS, and was accepted. His plan is to leave directly after the upcoming War Games and the subsequent patrol, and continue his career as an officer.
Anything Else?: Not at the moment.
The Player
Name/Alias: Lars
Experience: A year or so
How you found Battlestar Hyperion: Player Referral
Other characters: Jason Dumont, Kielen Anterries
Contact via: PM
